My best friend's wedding

This post is not about any Hollywood love triangle, but about how important it is to have a true friend by your side during the most important day of your life.

I was lucky enough to have my great friend Ash with me all along the way (yes, she's called Ash too!). She endured long fitting sessions, performed like a champ during last minute rushes... I guess that what I am trying to say is that at the end I loved every second of my big day, and she had a lot to do with it!

Now the time has come for me to repay the favour and slip on the bridesmaid shoes (which are going to be beautiful by the way!). Amongst the other traditional chores (yes I am talking about the hen party) I am in charge of the bridal headpiece. Knowing the bride this well really makes things easier. I started working on the designs ages ago, and after my trip to Sri Lanka all the final details are coming together. This rather significant piece is going to combine sumptuous materials with an exotic technique which I am dying to try for the first time. The style key words are: "bohemian, 1930's, deco, whimsical".

I'll keep you posted on the advances!

Real Brides: Sarah and Zoe

Today I'm going to tell you about two of the brides I'm working with at the moment: Sarah and Zoe.

Sarah arrived at our 'design meeting' with a fabulous back-up team of enthusiastic bridesmaids. We spent time getting to know each other and talking about the wedding that will be taking place on Devon's emblematic coastline, which is sprinkled with beautiful coves and traversed by a magical network of hand-carved Victorian tunnels! After trying on my latest collection and popping open a bottle of Prosecco (just to get the ideas flowing), the designs for all the headpieces were settled.

The 'bridal code' prevents me from revealing any design details before the big day, so I'll whet your curiosity with this hint: bohemian chic meets 1940's goddess! Sounds exciting, right?

Zoe and I met at the Something Kinda Vintage Wedding fair, and it was the designer/bride version of boy-meets-girl! She with textiles training and me a textile design aficionado... needless to say, we hit it off straight away. After an enthusiastic exchange of ideas and materials, I managed to find the perfect antique lace to match Zoe's dress. I bet it will look fantastic with the unique embroidered cap I've designed especially for her!

Meeting people during one of the most important times in their lives is a truly amazing experience. I can't wait to see these creations coming to life, so stay tuned for updates!

Sarah and Jay and their handmade invites.

Zoe's amazing wedding scrap book, which includes lots of lace and a whole page dedicated to us!

Real Brides: Emily

Back in January I met up with Emily to discuss some special headpieces for her and her bridesmaids. Emily told me all about her ideas and even gave me some bits of lace that she would like me to include in the pieces.

And thus began a wonderful creative journey!

Having in mind the 60's-inspired look that Emily was planning for her big day, I started off by reconstructing the scraps of lace, cropping each piece individually and sewing them back together. This up-cycled composition served as working base, to which I added the remaining elements: the rose, also supplied by Emily, ostrich feathers, the veiling, and other romantic and quirky details.

The bridesmaids pieces featured vintage flowers, ostrich feathers, pearls and even the same lace fabric used on Emily's dress. This particular detail completely transformed the pieces, giving them a lovely emotional side: I think they make perfect keepsakes!

I was very happy with the finished work and I was even happier after hearing back from Emily:

'It was a fantastic sunny day and I had so many lovely comments on my headpiece, thank-you so much again.'

This will be one project to remember!